Shards of Glass
by Rubytronix
Summary: Abby and Connor fall through an anomaly- they meet Helen who is going to manipulate Philip, and there's not a thing they can do about it.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Primeval and all its characters belong to someone else.

_Summary: - This is a first for me- an adventure story rather than just fluff! Still some Abby/ Connor fluff cos I just can't help myself- but some action too. _

_This first chapter's quite short and reflects the way most episodes of Primeval start- with members of the public discovering an anomaly, and sets the scene for what comes next._

_This first chapter is based on my thoughts as I trudged to work on a wet and windy day after the Christmas holidays, and this story just popped into my head. Don't worry, though- the team appear on the scene in Chapter Two._

_Please be kind for my first action story. I so hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed writing it._

**Shards of Glass**

**Chapter One**- A wet and Windy Day

The woman left home well wrapped up against the foul weather. It was the first day back to normality after the Christmas/ New Year holidays and the weather matched the feeling of bleakness the woman felt at having to return to work. How she disliked her job- well, it wasn't so much the job as the people she had to work with. They were so nasty and seemed to give her the worst jobs to do- well it felt like that to her anyway!

The weather reflected her mood as she trudged on her way. It was raining heavily, and the strong winds seemed to push her faster towards the place she dreaded going the most. Her head was down under her black umbrella as she surged onward, battling against the elements.

"Oh no!" she thought "It's so dark. It's going to thunder any minute!" She was scared of thunder and lightening, so she hurried along as fast as she could. Lo and behold, there was a sudden flash and a clap of thunder. The woman started to half run and half walk, hampered partly due to age and partly due to the number of bags she was carrying. She pulled the umbrella way down in front of her face and she could only see her feet splashing in the puddles as she dashed along.

Suddenly, it seemed to get much brighter- as if the sun had suddenly come out, reflecting sparkles on the puddles at her feet. Maybe her luck was changing, she thought and dashed forward. Suddenly, the pounding on her umbrella stopped. The wind had gone- it was totally quiet and calm. The woman came to a stop and slowly lowered her umbrella. The sight that met her eyes shocked her and took her breath away for a moment.

The view was breathtaking. Green and lush with many trees. And there! There in front of her eyes stood a huge….. a huge dinosaur! She closed her eyes, and opened them again. The huge brachiosaurus ceased munching the leaves in the high boughs of the tree, and looked at the intruder for a moment. It quickly lost interest and turned back to the lush leaves on the tree.

The woman looked back from where she had come, but could only see the bright shards of glass sparkling and pulsing behind her. She looked at the herd of dinosaurs. And looked back again at the light. Closing her eyes, she ran back towards the light, still clutching her bags tightly in her hands.

Immediately she was hit by the wind and rain. She stopped running. The light stopped pulsing and disappeared. She suddenly lost control and started to scream and scream…..

To be Continued.

_I hope you liked it! Please review, if you have the time! _


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Primeval and all its characters belong to someone else.

_I hope you enjoy Chapter Two. If so- please … You got it! Please review!_

**Shards of Glass**

**Chapter Two**- Not Again!

At the ARC, the alarms suddenly blared out from the ADD. The team of Matt, Becker, Emily, Connor and Abby all suddenly appeared at the Hub from different locations, depending on where they were working. Matt and Emily had been looking at the plants in one of the labs; Becker had been supervising the cleaning of the weapons in the armoury; Connor had been working in his lab and Abby had been overseeing the animals in the menagerie when the klaxon sounded. They gathered around Jess at the controls, as she furiously punched keys on her keyboard as they arrived.

"What've we got, Jess?" asked Matt

"It's an anomaly just on the outskirts of the city. No details of creature incursion, though" Jess told the team. "Oh! - It's gone!" They all looked at each other, wondering why the anomaly had closed so quickly. Just as Jess finished speaking, Lester appeared from behind them.

"I've just had a call in from the police. A woman has been found screaming blue murder in the street about seeing a dinosaur through some floating glass! You'd best get a team down there and see what's happening. Jenny- you go too and make up some story to calm the woman down before the press get to hear about this!"

With that, Lester started to turn away. He turned back suddenly "Well, come on! Chop, chop! You're not paid to stand there gassing all day!"

"Yup!" said Connor, turning to hurry out of the room with the others on his heels. Matt leapt in the driver seat of the first SUV, and Emily got in beside him. Connor and Abby got in the back, leaving Becker to sort out a team of soldiers for backup and then jump into the second SUV with Jenny. Abby and Connor looked at each other. They always felt a little thrill of excitement at a new anomaly, although they had learnt the hard way that it wasn't all fun and games- people got hurt or even killed!

Abby smiled at Connor as she thought that it wasn't so long ago that he would have tried to get into the front seat of the car- keeping count of when he'd last ridden 'shotgun', causing the rest of the team to laugh at his childish antics in keeping tally. He'd really grown up since then in more ways than one. Her hand went to the finger where her engagement ring usually sat. She had a habit of touching it, and turning it around now and again- she still couldn't believe she was engaged! Of course the ring wasn't there, she realised, feeling a bit silly at how bereft she felt at its not being there. She'd left the ring safely at home- she couldn't wear it to work unfortunately.

Connor noticed the little action and sigh when she remembered she'd left the ring behind. He gave her one of his gorgeous huge grins. He always felt so happy when she did that- he felt it showed that she really wanted to be engaged to him- he was still a little unsure of himself, and couldn't believe someone like Abby could want to marry a 'geek' like him.

Abby loved Connor's smile, especially when his dimple came into play on his left cheek. He was so hot, she thought, especially as he didn't seem to know it! They looked at each other and got lost in the intensity of each others eyes.

"Hey, you two!" a voice suddenly penetrated their thoughts "C'mon, lovebirds" said Matt "We're here!" He said it indulgently and smiled at Emily, who smiled back at him. She thought Abby and Connor were really cute and always thought their little displays of affection towards each other as being very sweet. She could really relate to them, as she was just beginning her relationship with Matt, and had never had such a wondrous thing happen to her before. After all, she was from the Victorian era, and women there were cosseted and kept at home until their fathers made a 'match' for them, if they were from a good family. Love and affection just didn't come into it, so Emily felt really lucky with her new life, especially finding Matt.

They went to the anomaly site to see if they could find any signs of a creature incursion. They could see Jenny off at one side, talking to a tearful woman. Connor wondered how she was going to explain it to her. He'd love to go and listen, but had work to do here…

As he began to get out his scientific equipment with Abby's help, the anomaly suddenly burst open again, and the woman squawked in fear.

"There! There! What did I tell you!" she screamed.

"Good luck, Jenny" Connor thought as he set to work. He changed tack and started to get the equipment ready to seal the anomaly before anything came through. Too late! Just as Becker and Matt joined him, some small creatures about one foot long came running through. Connor laughed at the small vanilla fur balls as they zoomed in from the anomaly.

"Triconodons" he said "They usually like to spend most of their time up trees- I wonder what's made them run? They're really cute!"

"Aaah!" said Abby "Sweet!"

They all started rushing around trying to grab the little creatures, which seemed rather timid and ran from them. They had to move quickly before they lost them up in the trees, and Abby tried to count them as they came through to make sure they would be able to account for them all. Connor and Abby laughed, remembering the time a group of dodos came through an anomaly. They had led the team a merry dance- and it looked like this little bunch were going to do the same. Connor didn't let himself remember how it had ended -with Tom's death. They had a job to do!

"Here's one" said Becker, holding the little creature and trying to put it back through. It bit his finger before leaping back through the anomaly. "Ouch!" he said crossly, sucking his finger. "You're lucky I don't just shoot you!" he shouted after the animal, earning a death glare from Abby.

"We've got most of them" puffed Matt, a little out of breath as he put one of the creatures back through.

"We've got the last couple here" Abby and Connor laughed. The creatures seemed to like them and snuggled quietly in their arms. The anomaly suddenly started pulsing.

"Oh no!" cried Abby "It's about to close-quick, Connor let's get these last two through!" They were close to the anomaly and were just pushing the furry creatures through, when suddenly one that no-one had noticed jumped onto Connor's back, knocking him off balance. He bumped into Abby, who was just in front of him and the creature, Abby and Connor and their two bundles all fell in a heap through the anomaly.

They jumped up- just in time to see the anomaly close behind them. They looked at each other in consternation.

"Not again!"…..

To Be Continued…


	3. Chapter 3

_Disclaimer: Primeval and all its characters belong to someone else._

_Chapter Three up now- I hope you find it exciting! If so, please review!_

**Shards of Glass**

**Chapter Three**- A Familiar Face

At first they were horrified! Terrified! The anomaly had closed behind them, leaving them stranded once again. They both thought about the year they had been lost in the Cretacious- just the two of them, alone for a year.

"This can't be happening!" Connor murmured, a single tear running down his cheek. "Not again! Please- not again!"

Abby too was distraught- she just couldn't do this again! She didn't even know how she'd managed to survive that year. They'd kept each other alive somehow- kept their hopes up, but to have it happen again- it was just too much to comprehend. They looked at each other in horror.

"It…. It's opened twice now" Connor finally got out "It'll do it again, Abby- I'm sure of it!" Connor said caressing Abby's cheek. Abby looked at Connor. She took a deep breath and dashed her tears away, she could handle this. At least they were together. She glanced down- one of the small creatures was still in her arms. It had taken to her, as most animals did, and nestled close against her.

"Where… where are we?" she said looking around "What period are we in?" Connor also looked around.

"Well, going by these fellas" he said waving his arms at the triconodon he still held in his arms and the one Abby had snuggled up to her "And the conifers and lush vegetation- I'd say we're in the late Jurassic"

"Oh- w…what sort of creatures live here?"

"Er… stegosaurus- brachiosaurus- allosaurus…."

"Ok! OK! I don't want to know any more. We won't be here long enough to see any of them anyway- will we?"

"No… no… of course not. The anomaly'll open soon. I'm sure of it, Abby. In the meantime, we seem to be in quite a good place- quite sheltered from view. I think we're OK to stay here for a bit"

"OK, then" Abby said taking a breath to calm herself. She looked like she was going to cry at any minute- no doubt terrified they'd be trapped here like they were before- in the past. Connor was terrified too, but he knew he had to stay strong for Abby. She was never going to see his fear, he swore.

"Abby-" he said, trying to use a sing- song tone, but which came out as a high pitched squeak instead, as he swallowed his fear. "We should take advantage of this nice, warm place while we can- we won't be here long!"

"What did you have in mind?" said Abby, her eyes nervously darting here and there as she watched out for any unknown predators.

"C'm here'n I'll show you" Connor said and pulled Abby to him. As they fell together onto the ferns on the ground, they couldn't help but laugh at the sight of the little creatures quickly scurrying away back to the trees and at each other. A little tlc was what they both needed right now! Abby instantly felt better lying there in Connor's arms, looking deep into his chocolate brown puppy dog eyes. Connor bent his head down towards her and kissed Abby fiercely and passionately. Their embrace made their fear dissipate for the moment, and they began to roll over and over as they kissed and embraced.

Abby started fumbling with the buttons on Connor's shirt, and when she seemed to be having trouble undoing them due to her trembling hands- partly still shaking with fear of their situation- and partly with desire, Connor helped her undo them. His lips still on hers, he cast aside his shirt and then pulled apart from her for a moment to pull off his tee- shirt, whilst Abby did the same. They sat there in the sunlight for a moment, looking into each others eyes Then they came together, fiercely and passionately …

"Well, well- isn't this lovely" said a voice they both recognised very well. They looked up, dumbfounded as a familiar face stood there, hands on hips, looking down at them. "So the little Connor and Abby have finally grown up! Well, as much as I'm glad to see that, voyeurism isn't really my style. TAKE THEM!" The woman fired the last two words at a couple of men who instantly grabbed them.

"H…Helen!" stammered Connor. They were amazed- none other than Helen Cutter stood in front of them, smiling humourlessly at them both. There were several men with her, obviously under her command. Connor and Abby recognised these men and knew them by the name of the 'Cleaners'. There were more than six men standing there- all exactly identical to the others, except some had woolly hats on and some were bare- headed.

Abby and Connor found themselves hauled up and held tightly by a couple of strong men each. Abby struggled in their grasp, but they were far too strong for her. Helen just laughed at her efforts.

"Little Abby" she said "Always so brave! You remind me of myself at your age." She laughed.

Connor just stared "You…. But you're…." He suddenly stopped, seeing the look Abby threw at him and the tiny, hardly noticeable shake of her head. He'd been about to say that Helen was dead- but he realised that he mustn't reveal this to Helen.

"I'm what?" she asked

"You're…..here!" he finished lamely.

Helen looked at Connor, her head on one side "Always so succinct, Connor" she said "Now- enough of the pleasantries- BRING THEM!" once again she shot the two last words out at the 'Cleaners', and as Helen threw them their tops, they were pushed along towards an opening in the trees.

Abby and Connor grabbed the opportunity to speak to each other on the way.

"Connor- we mustn't tell her anything we know- her death- Cutter's- Stephen's. We don't know how much she knows in this timeline. We could alter everything!"

"Yeah, I know- I'm sorry- it was just a shock. I'll be more careful"

"It's Ok … Ouch!" Abby exclaimed as one of the 'Cleaners' pushed her hard away from Connor. When she regained her footing, she said "I don't get all this timeline stuff either. All I know is, we must be careful. Not a word about New Dawn or anything- - perhaps you should leave the talking to me!"

They were pushed and shoved along, gaining scrapes and cuts from the sharp branches as they went, until they reached a building, well hidden amongst the conifers, looking completely out of place in the surroundings. Connor and Abby looked at each other as they were pushed into a little room in the basement, and the door was slammed and locked behind them.

"Hey! Let us out! Hey" yelled Connor. But there was no reply, other than two eyes peering through a slot in the door. Suddenly they disappeared and a shutter slammed over the slot, blocking the person behind the eyes from view.

"What d'you suppose is going on?" whispered Abby, finally able to put on her strappy tops.

"Dunno" said Connor, also getting dressed, "But we can be sure it's nothing good if Helen's involved- let's think now- this is probably before Danny got to her, so she might know about Cutter, but then again- if she's been 'anomaly hopping' who's to say…."

"Connor! Stop! This is all doing my head in! It's too Dr Who for the likes of me! All I know is- Cutter went through an anomaly and time changed and he lost his Claudia. We can't even try to make sense of it- we just can't! But we can make sure we don't change things by not telling her anything!"

"You're right, as usual, Abby" answered Connor, the furrow in his brow clearing as he stopped thinking about it all. "We'll just have to bide our time and see what she's going to do with us."

He walked up and down a few times and tried the small barred window to see if he could open it, but it wouldn't budge. After the third time, Abby called to him-

"Connor- come here! You'll wear yourself out"

He walked over to where Abby was sitting and flopped down next to her.

"Sorry" he said.

"Hey!" she replied "It's OK. We'll be OK"

"Yeah- I just…if she hurts you-" Connor's words were cut off by Abby pressing her lips against his. As with any contact from Abby, all comprehensive thought evaporated from Connor's mind- even forgetting for the moment the trouble they were in. He responded to Abby's kisses and their passion rose as they kissed. Connor felt Abby trembling as he caressed her and held her tightly against his body. He put his hand to her face and lovingly stroked her cheek. As his desire grew, his hand curled round and grasped a handful of her hair. He pulled her to the ground roughly, still kissing her, rolling on top of her.

In the little room on the floor above, Helen Cutter watched the little scene on the small CCTV, smiling slightly, but without amusement. Suddenly she felt somebody's presence behind her, and as she turned she quickly switched the CCTV off, cutting off the view of Abby and Connor with her body.

"Ah- Philip!" she said…

To Be Continued….

_Please review! _


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: Primeval and all its characters belong to someone else.

_Summary: - This is a first for me- an adventure story rather than just fluff! Still some Abby/ Connor fluff cos I just can't help myself- but some action too. _

**Shards of Glass**

**Chapter Four**- Nothing They Can Do

Abby and Connor were woken up. The one tiny window in the basement showed that they had slept all night as they woke up to the dawn light. They stretched and tried to ease out the stiffness in their limbs from sleeping on the cold, hard floor all night with nothing to soften their makeshift bed.

"Hey!" said Connor

"Hey!" responded Abby

They suddenly jumped as the slot in the door opened with a crash. The same two eyes looked in on them. They huddled together, afraid and wondering what was going to happen.

"Shall we grab them, if they come in?" Connor asked

"Yes- together we might have a chance" Abby responded, her muscles tightening in readiness. Connor felt her brace herself and prepared himself to fight off whoever entered- even if it was Helen herself. "Remember- just like I taught you in the Cretacious" Abby continued quietly.

The door slammed open, and a 'Cleaner' walked in with a tray containing a breakfast of sorts in his hands. He bent down to put the tray on the floor and Abby and Connor made their move. Abby sprung on the 'Cleaner's' back, whilst Connor grabbed at the hand holding a small revolver. They all grappled for a while until Abby was finally flung from the 'Cleaner's' back. Unfortunately she hit Connor as she fell, causing him to lose his footing, and his hold on the gun loosened as he stumbled.

Connor was flung aside now that the 'Cleaner' had regained control, and the man once again pointed the gun at them both. Suddenly his arm shot upwards, and he hit Connor on the side of his head with the gun. Connor instantly dropped, to the sound of Abby's sharp intake of breath. She knelt beside him as the 'Cleaner's' arm came up to strike her, and she brought up her arms to protect her head from the blow she knew was coming.

"STOP!" Helen's voice boomed out. The 'Cleaner' instantly stopped what he was doing, his arm still raised. "I told you not to hurt them. THEY ARE NOT TO BE HARMED. LISTEN TO MY VOICE. - THEY ARE NOT TO BE HARMED"

The 'Cleaner' stepped back, still training the gun on Abby and Connor as more 'Cleaners' joined them. Connor struggled to his feet, his cheek cut and bleeding from the vicious blow.

"I'm sorry about that- truly. I don't want you hurt- either of you!" said Helen

"What _do_ you want, then?" Abby said angrily

"I just need you to stay here for a little while longer and then I'm going to let you go home!"

"W…what?" Connor said, glancing at Abby "Why? Why're you keeping us here?"

"Well- don't you worry your pretty head about that now. Come- I'll get you some proper food." She said, looking in disdain at the tray and its spilt contents "But I'm afraid that after that you'll have to come back here- just for a while. BRING THEM….."

They found themselves being pushed towards the door and had no choice but to follow Helen as she led them up to a room where a table was laid with food. They were pushed into their seats, where they each sat, not touching the food. Helen looked at them both as she joined them.

"Go on," she said "There's nothing wrong with the food- no drugs- no tricks." They still didn't move. "Look!" she continued, and helped herself to a strawberry out of which she took a huge bite.

Abby looked at Connor and gave him an imperceptible nod, and that was all it took for Connor, who had been practically drooling at the sight of the food- he grabbed some of the food onto his plate and started eating. Abby also followed suit- they were both so hungry. They ate ravenously in silence for a short while. Helen watched them, eating an apple she cut into slices with a large knife. When they finally slowed down, she said…

"I didn't want to imprison you, you know. But you came at a very inopportune time for me. I'm not going to hurt either of you- not this time, anyway. In a few hours time all this will be over and the anomaly will reopen and you can go back to your nice cosy home and to Nick- how is Nick, by the way?"

Connor paused mid chew "Er…." He said.

"He's fine" lied Abby throwing a look at Connor. Connor was scared he would say the wrong thing and crammed some more food into his mouth so he couldn't say anything.

"I loved him, you know" Helen mused. "Such a pity he can't see the whole picture"

Connor just saw red. This woman killed her husband but dared to say she loved him! He opened his mouth to speak, but because he had filled it with so much food, he choked instead. He started to cough and Abby went over and patted him on the back.

"Don't rise to it, Connor- you mustn't" she whispered in his ear. Connor nodded and gulped down some water, but remained silent.

"Why _did_ you imprison us, then?" asked Abby

"You just came through the wrong anomaly at the wrong time. I'm conducting private business here- nothing to do with you or the ARC. That's all I'm prepared to say. I'll open the anomaly later and you can both go back to your nice little lives, and no harm done!" she stood up "Now! I'm sorry but I have to send you back to the cellar. I've work to do here-" with that she clapped her hands and some 'Cleaners' came and grabbed them both. "DO NOT HARM THEM" Helen reiterated as the 'Cleaners' bundled them out of the room and threw them roughly back into their cell.

"Ow!" said Connor "They've obviously got a different idea of harming someone than I have- that hurt!"

Abby picked herself up from the floor where she'd fallen and gingerly rubbed her arm where a 'Cleaner' had clutched at her. She nodded in agreement. "What d'you think she's doing that we mustn't see?" she wondered

"Dunno" said Connor, going to the little window. He looked out "Ah!" he said

"Ah?" questioned Abby

"I think I know" Connor replied, still gazing out of the window

"Wha….. oh!" Abby had gone to join Connor at the window. In the distance she could see Helen talking to a tall thin man. Helen had her arm around him and at one point. They kissed. When Helen moved off both Connor and Abby got a perfect view of the man…. Philip Burton!

"This must be when they planned New Dawn together!" said Connor "We've stumbled on the time she entrapped him and started working on him!"

"No wonder she wants us out of the way! She doesn't want us seeing Philip, nor him seeing us. It would ruin all her plans to get you to help him"

"Arrggh!" yelled Connor as he rattled the iron bars, trying to break free. "I've got to get out of here- I've got to stop him. Then none of New Dawn would happen- Matt wouldn't have had to live that awful life in the future. All those people needn't have died" He rattled and pulled at the bars again, a leg up against the wall to try to get some more traction.

"No, Connor, stop- no it's OK- Stop!" cried Abby. She grabbed Connor around the waist, hand on his arms

"Ssshh!" she whispered, stopping his frantic pulling at the bars. She kissed him softly, bringing him back to his senses.

"It's OK, it's OK!" she kept saying between kisses. Connor flopped down to the floor, tears streaming from his eyes. Abby held him and caressed and kissed him. When he had calmed down, she said

"There's nothing we can do, Connor. We may do more harm than good if we interfere. Matt may not even exist if we stop them! I don't know! But I do know that in 2012, they're both defeated. They're both dead and the world is saved. Matt is in the ARC, and has found the love of his life with Emily. I hate to say this, but I think Helen's right. We mustn't interfere. She's doing it for all the wrong reasons, but we _know_ how it turns out. We must wait it out, Connor."

"I know- I know you're right, Abby. But if I could… if I could save Philip! Save him from her…that evil…. He's a brilliant man, Abby- she's ruining him and she's doing it NOW! I can save him! I can't sit here and do nothing!"

"SShh! Connor. That's exactly what you must do. Come here" and with that she pulled him close "I'm sorry- I'm so sorry" she said.

Connor's tears rolled down his cheeks and his shoulders shook silently with his grief. He knew in his heart Abby was right, but he had a kind heart and couldn't bear to think that Helen was manipulating Philip right now, right under his nose, and there wasn't a thing he could do about it. Helen was out there now kissing him, pretending she loved him, when all this time she just wanted him to destroy the world. She obviously didn't want Philip and Connor to meet or else her plan wouldn't work. She knew the only person who could help Philip with new Dawn was Connor. She had to keep them apart and he and Abby had stumbled in at the one place she didn't want them to be.

Abby silently sat beside Connor, her heart breaking for him- she knew how hard this must be for him. But she knew they mustn't interfere or who knew what would happen. When Connor's tears finally dries up, he wiped his eyes with his hands and laid his head on Abby's shoulder, finding comfort in her, as he always did.

Abby kissed the top of his head. He turned his face up to look at her, his eyes red and swollen. She kissed each eye in turn. Then his nose. Then his lips, softly, gently, comforting him with her love. Connor tasted her lips with his tongue, separating them and kissing her more passionately. He groaned into her mouth, and she moved from his side until she was straddling him, both of them grabbing handfuls of each other's hair as their passion grew.

"Abby- I…" he murmured

"Me too…" she whispered back. They both needed this- they needed the comfort and love only they could receive from each other, forgetting for the moment about Helen and Philip; the 'Cleaners'; the worry and the fear they wouldn't get home, the two young people gave into the desire, love and comfort they shared with each other…..

To Be Continued….

_I really hope you enjoyed this Chapter! Please review, if you have the time! _


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: Primeval and all its characters belong to someone else.

_Summary: - This is a first for me- an adventure story rather than just fluff! _

_I hope you find this chapter exciting with a little angst! Please enjoy…_

**Shards of Glass**

**Chapter Five**- Despair

It was beginning to get dark when the door opened with a crash. Two 'Cleaners' stood there, guns trained on Abby and Connor.

"Move" one of them said, indicating that they should go out of the door with the nozzle of his revolver. They moved past the 'Cleaner' and went through the door, down a corridor and out into the evening air. They both took a huge breath once they were outside in the fresh air. They had been cooped up too long and savoured the moment of freedom. Helen appeared in front of them…

"It won't be long now" she said "But for now you need some air and exercise"

They looked at her in surprise. "I told you, I don't want to hurt you. No that wouldn't suit my purpose at all, especially you…" she said to Connor, practically purring in his ear, and stroking his cheek. Connor just saw red! Abby noticed his expression, and grabbed his arm, squeezing him hard.

"Ah, look!- the little Abby's jealous" taunted Helen "Now, behave you two" she said "Or I'll send you back to the cellar." Abby and Connor tried to make their expressions as bland and neutral as they could. They didn't want to be sent back to the cellar.

"That's better" taunted Helen, caressing Connor's shoulder and chest. "Shame you ever met Nick! If only you'd met me first, things would have been different!"

Connor knew she was playing games with them. She had manipulated every male she came in contact with. Well, she wouldn't get him, he thought. He remained expressionless and still, not reacting to her at all. Beside him he felt Abby stiffen, and she seemed ready to burst.

"Who was that man you were with?" Abby blurted out. Connor looked at her in astonishment, thankful she hadn't mentioned Philip by name. But Abby gave him a look and a tiny shake of the head to indicate she knew what she was doing.

"What man" Helen snapped back, moving right up into Abby's face

"We saw you kissing a man. Who is he? What about your husband?"

"He's no one- a work colleague. We have great plans together he and I- and you two _had_ to come barging in here, disturbing everything!" Helen suddenly became enraged, and pulled back her hand and slapped Abby hard on the cheek with a stinging blow. Connor grabbed Helen's wrist to stop her and the 'Cleaners' jumped in, pulling him away from Helen. They grabbed Connor and Abby and made them move back towards the cellar to the sound of Helen's maniacal laughter echoing behind them as they were pushed away.

"Abby, are you OK?" Connor said when they'd been bundled back into the cellar "Why did you do that?" he asked. Abby slowly looked up, a small smile on her face, her right cheek bright red from the slap she had received. She slowly raised her arm. In her hand she held a large knife. It was the very knife Helen had used to cut the apple with at breakfast.

"Abby! You're brilliant!" laughed Connor, and moved in to kiss her.

"I thought if we could use this to get out of here and sneak around a bit, we might find something to help us?"

"I thought we couldn't interfere?" said Connor

"I know, but maybe we'll find something that would be of some use. Maybe we'll be able to find her anomaly device. If we could take that back with us you could figure it out… I don't know Connor, but she's just plain evil. I just saw the opportunity and took it!"

"OK, let's just see what we can find then!" said Connor, his huge grin lighting up his face. They started working on the door with the knife. It took a lot of time and effort. Connor and Abby took it in turns to work on the door. Eventually the wood by the lock was splintered enough for them to push the door open. They looked at each other in triumph, then Connor carefully pushed open the door a crack and peered out. The corridor was empty, and they silently moved forward towards the rooms above.

They didn't meet anyone on the stairs- it all seemed eerily quiet. They finally reached the room Helen used as an office, and looked through the open door.

"She's not here" Connor whispered. They went into the room and shut the door behind them. They separated and started to look through Helen's papers and equipment. Connor stopped to read some of Helen's papers, but they didn't seem to be anything of importance.

Suddenly, Abby called out to him- "Connor! - here's the device! We can get home! Maybe you'll be able to work out how it works?"

"C'mon, let's get out of here" Connor replied. They started to move out of the room and along the corridor. Suddenly they heard footsteps coming nearer.

"Quick- in here!" Connor cried, opening a door to a cleaning cupboard. They dived inside as a large group of identical men marched past them, and turned the corner. At the rear of the army of men marched none other than Philip Burton, chatting animatedly to someone they could only presume was Helen, on his mobile phone as he walked. Connor started to follow them, but Abby pulled him back.

"No, Connor- he mustn't see you. It could change everything!"

Connor turned back and they fled in the other direction, Connor sadly looking back over his shoulder at Philip as he went. They had just about reached the door when suddenly a 'Cleaner' jumped out in front of them. They skidded to a stop, and turned around. But some more 'Cleaners' appeared in front of them. They turned to the left, but more appeared. Suddenly they were surrounded on all sides by the 'Cleaners'. Connor and Abby put their hands in the air, Connor still holding the anomaly opening device.

Helen slowly walked to where they were. She took the device from Connor's hand and looked at them both.

"You really are both so tiresome" she said "The sooner I get you out of here the better! I never wanted to hurt you, but keep this up, and I will have to punish you! You're driving me to it. All you had to do was wait. Then I was going to send you home, safe and sound. Now- DON'T disappoint me again!" She grabbed the knife out of Abby's hand and held it to Abby's throat before turning away.

Connor felt shivers down his spine at Helen's words. He had no doubt she would carry out her threat. The 'Cleaners' once again grabbed them and made to drag them away to another room. They were none too gentle about the way they handled Connor and Abby, and this time Helen did nothing to stop their rough handling. They snatched the anomaly device from Connor's hand and manhandled them to a room where they were thrown into it and the door was slammed shut and locked behind them. Both Connor and Abby had to pick themselves up from the floor where they had fallen.

"Sorry- stupid idea" said Abby, crestfallen

"No- no. It wasn't! We nearly got the device. Arrgh! I feel so _useless_!" he yelled in frustration.

"We'd better just wait it out… she said she's going to send us home soon. Shame to go back empty handed, though. That device would have been very useful"

"Well, there's nothing we can do. We can't stop Helen. We can't save Philip. We can't get the device- we can't do _anything_!" Connor banged his fist on a table in frustration.

"Hey- at least we know we win in the end. It all turns out fine…"

"Yes, but Abby, people died. April… Philip… we had a chance to stop all that. I wish Matt was here- he'd know what to do. I'm so _useless_- I'm not a leader- never have been!"

With that Connor held his face in his hands and sobbed. His shoulders shook as he let out all of his despair. Abby sat beside him, tears also streaming down her face, and they just sat together afraid and not knowing what to do…

To Be Continued…..

_Well, what did you think? I hope it was as much fun to read as it was to write it! _


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: Primeval and all its characters belong to someone else.

_Summary: - This is a first for me- an adventure story rather than just fluff! _

_This chapter has more angst, I'm afraid, but some fluff too! I decided it's time! I can't go for long without it!_

**Shards of Glass**

**Chapter Six**- Tears and Fears

It seemed a very long time before they heard someone at the door. The rattling of the lock woke them up and they huddled together- disorientated and still muzzy from their disjointed sleep.

"Good morning," said Helen, sounding in a much better mood "I hope you both slept well?" she moved over to Abby and stroked her still reddened cheek, not seeming to notice when Abby flinched at her touch. Helen turned abruptly away saying "Come along now- you must be hungry. I've had some food prepared for you"

They got up and followed her, surrounded by the clone 'Cleaners', and were again taken to the room where they'd had eaten before. This time, they didn't need any urging, and grabbed the fruit and cakes and started to eat hungrily. They were both dehydrated from lack of water and drank their fill. When they started to slow down, they looked over at Helen, who was sitting with them, eating her slices of apple from her knife and watching them closely. She had a slight smirk on her face as she looked at them.

"You're going home today" she suddenly announced. Connor and Abby looked at each other as she continued "The anomaly will be opened in exactly two hours time, and you will both go back through it. Do you understand?"

"Y…Yeah" Connor replied

"My business here is nearly finished, and then you will be escorted back to the anomaly site. You will go straight to the anomaly- no more sneaking around or 'clever' moves. I promise you, you _will_ regret it if you try!"

"What, Helen? You're always threatening us. But you need us alive for some reason- you've told us that much. What will you do if we don't do what you want, eh?" Connor yelled at her, tired of Helen's games and threats against them. He knew she wanted him to help Philip with New Dawn, so she wouldn't kill him… Oh! Realisation hit him. Yes, she needed _him_! Just him! Somehow Helen knew what his weakness was- Abby! If she ever tried to hurt Abby…he couldn't bear the thought!

"Y'know what, Helen- never mind! We want to go back, so you can stop all your threats. A distance of 145 million years between us is too close! I never want to see you again!"

"Ah! Little Connor, all macho and brave. Who ever thought they'd see the day!" laughed Helen, taunting Connor "Now, now, little Connor, put your claws back in- I'm sure no-one will have to do anything to anyone" she continued, looking pointedly at Abby "You're a clever boy- I can see you know what I mean"

Abby looked from Helen to Connor, not quite understanding the full gist of their conversation, but realising Connor was afraid of something unspoken between the two of them. She stood close by his side, pressing against him to let him know she was there for him, and his hand went down by his side, as he took her hand in his, hidden by their bodies from Helen's view.

Helen waved her hand and the 'Cleaners' pushed Connor and Abby out of the room, and returned them to their prison to wait until they were to be taken to the anomaly.

"Are you OK, Connor" Abby asked worriedly." What just happened?"

"Hey… no…no…_I'm_ sorry," Connor said softly "I just can't stand being near that…that murdering…_woman_ any longer!" He spat out the word 'woman' as if it was a dirty word. He didn't want to worry Abby with the realisation that Helen wouldn't hesitate to kill her to keep him in order.

"Well, if you're sure…"

"Yeah, I am. You know what, Abby," Connor said brightening up "you're right, we've got two whole hours to entertain ourselves! Let's think! What can we do…?" he raised his eyebrows suggestively at her a few times.

Abby couldn't help but laugh. She knew Connor so well, that she knew Helen had hit a nerve with him, but she just couldn't work out what it was….. her thoughts were suddenly cut off as Connor roughly pulled her to him and soundly kissed her on the lips. She immediately responded and after a few minutes, Connor suddenly let her go so abruptly she nearly fell. He put his forehead against hers and they stood like that for a few minutes until Connor lifted his head up and looked her straight in the eyes, a stray tear appearing from the corner of his eye, running down his cheek.

"I couldn't bear it if anything happened to you, Abby," he whispered "It would be a very lonely place here without you!"

"I'm not going anywhere" Abby replied softly, putting her head up to his, and gently capturing his lips with her own.

Connor and Abby slid down to the floor, their lips together all fears and worries pushed to the back of their minds for the next few precious moments, caressing, whispering and kissing each other softly; passionately, sharing their love…..

…..

A short time later, they settled down to rest before it was time to go, trying to conserve their energy to face what was to come next. They sat together on the floor, backs against the wall, Abby's head resting on Connor's chest. They didn't sleep, and just whispered together now and then, but mostly just sat there in silence, lost in their own thoughts.

Connor tried to think of a way to contact Philip, to try to warn him somehow- tell him Helen didn't care about him, and he would ultimately die. No…how was he going to do that? Philip hadn't believed him when he'd told him about Matt, and what New Dawn created. Why would he believe him now? He was just some stranger to Philip- they hadn't even met yet, in this time. In the end, everyone was responsible for their own actions- but Philip thought Helen wanted to help the world- not destroy it. His only crime was he was too trusting, and let her inflate his ego. Connor knew he was too trusting himself at times- there'd been Caroline, April and then Philip too! They'd all lied to him. And then of course, there was Abby- he just couldn't risk Helen hurting Abby! He banged his head back against the wall. No- there was nothing he could do!

Abby was lying against Connor's chest. Her thoughts were running more or less on the same lines. What could they do? Should they do something to try to stop her? But Abby didn't know what effect any action would have. She was too afraid to do anything in case it affected the future- their future!

The two young people sat silently, locked in their own terrible dilemmas, both wishing they could do something, but too afraid to mess with the timelines, and alter the future. They both drifted off into an uneasy sleep, until they were suddenly jolted awake by the door opening. They were roughly hauled to their feet, still groggy from sleep. Helen faced them

"It's time" she said simply "I have had the anomaly opened. It will remain open for exactly one hour only, so no funny business- I suggest you hurry there immediately. By that time my visitor and I will be long gone. I can only give you two of my men, so try to make it through alive, won't you! I don't want you messing up my plans, but I don't have the time to take you back. The rest of my men and I are needed elsewhere. We're going to visit Nick! I'll send him your love..."

Connor suddenly felt shivers running down his spine- surely… no! Surely she wasn't taking the clones to the ARC- surely this wasn't the time when she took the clones to the ARC, and killed Cutter! No! It couldn't be!

"N….." he started to say, and made a grab for Helen. The 'Cleaners' were too quick for him, and were all over him before he had the chance to do anything. One of them pulled a punch and hit Connor square in the face. Abby was trying to fight off more of the 'Cleaners', and was doing a good job of it, her kick boxing skills standing her in good stead. Unbidden, Caroline's advice about kicking her opponent effectively came into Abby's head, as she executed a perfect kick to one 'Cleaner' and he instantly went down.

Connor was knocked out cold by the 'Cleaner's' punch. The clones seemed to possess extra strength compared to a normal man, and although Connor was much more 'bad ass' than he used to be, he still crumpled under the blow. Abby was finally overcome purely due to the numbers of adversaries. There was no way she could fend them all off on her own.

She was finally thrown off into a corner of the room, where she hit her head on a table, and was knocked unconscious. Connor started to stir, groaning as he came to. He looked around, trying to clear his head, and then remembered what had happened.

"Abby!" he cried when he saw her prone body lying at the back of the room. He ran over to her and as he pulled her into his arms, she too groaned and started to come round.

"I warned you, Connor" said a voice. He looked up from where he was cradling Abby to see Helen's sneering face. "Now get up- my men will take you to the anomaly- they have strict instructions not to hurt either of you, but after that last stunt….. "

She went closer to Connor and whispered in his ear so that only he could hear her "They won't touch her- unless you try to escape! Pull another stunt like that and it's over. They have their instructions!" She stepped back from him.

Connor pulled Abby up gently, holding her in his arms as she held her head where she had hit it on the table.

"Well, I can't say it's been fun- but bon voyage! Oh! By the way… this building is set to be blown up and destroyed in the time it will take you to reach the anomaly- so don't bother trying to get back here another time, will you? You won't find anything left at all! " She laughed and tuned away, but seemed to have second thoughts and turned back "Remember what I said, Connor- no more chances….."

With that Helen left the room, but when she was just outside, she spoke to two heavily armed 'Cleaners' who were standing in the corridor. "HEAR MY VOICE" she said emphasising each word, "THEY ARE TO BE PROTECTED. TAKE THEM TO THE ANOMALY AND MAKE SURE THEY GO THROUGH. ONLY HARM THE GIRL IF THEY TRY TO ESCAPE- THE GIRL ONLY. HE MUST GO THROUGH SAFELY. HERE MY VOICE AND OBEY" Helen walked away without another glance.

The 'Cleaners' went into the room and pushed Abby and Connor towards the door, and they went with them, Abby still in Connor's arms.

"Are you OK?" Connor asked her- she was still groggy from the fall and a little unsteady on her feet.

"Yeah, I… I think so"

"We'd better move, we've only got an hour!" said Connor, as he helped Abby along

"Con.…do you think she's gone to kill Cutter? Do you….." Abby stopped as Connor's face crumpled as if he was about to cry.

"I don't know. I should have killed her when I had the chance. I should just have done it, and face the consequences later. I could have saved Cutter and Philip. I could have…."

"No, Connor- there was nothing you could do. It's not your fault. You mustn't feel guilty. It's Helen. It's always been Helen…"

Connor nodded, dashing his tears away. They quickly moved forward, Connor supporting Abby- they had to reach the anomaly in time…..

To Be Continued….

_Well- there it is! Teensy bit of fluff, but it's there amongst the angst! My poor young couple! Will they make it through? Well we'll just have to see what happens next…_

_Please review! _


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: Primeval and all its characters belong to someone else.

_Summary: - This is a first for me- an adventure story rather than just fluff! *Warning- character death- not too graphic, though!*  
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_I really enjoyed writing this chapter, and I hope you like it and it makes you want to read more!_

_Thank you for the reviews; alerts etc- I really can't tell you how much they mean to me! You are so kind to take the time!_

**Shards of Glass**

**Chapter Seven****- **The Journey

They started their journey as quickly as possible, and once they got outside into the fresh air Abby seemed to recover quite quickly as the soft breeze cleared her head. They were able to move quicker now that Connor didn't need to support Abby's weight. They knew it wasn't too far to the anomaly as they remembered their journey to the building- was it really only a few days ago that they'd fallen through the anomaly! It seemed so long ago, now! The 'Cleaners' seemed to know where they were leading them and although they weren't at all friendly, they made sure Abby and Connor could keep up with their pace as they all moved hurriedly through the dense vegetation.

"So, what's your names then?" Connor asked one of the 'Cleaners'. No answer!

"I'm Connor and this is Abby" he said waving his hand in Abby's direction. Still no reply. The 'Cleaner' just looked stonily at Connor as they moved on.

"Better not chat so much, mate," Connor continued "A creature might hear you…" he said a huge grin appearing on his face. The 'Cleaner' continued forward a footstep or two, ignoring Connor. Suddenly he stopped, and Connor bumped right into him.

The 'Cleaner' looked right into Connor's face and growled "You shut up, if you know what's good for you!"

"Er…Shutting up!" said Connor feeling intimidated. He looked down at his feet for a moment until the 'Cleaner' shoved him forward. Abby cast him a sympathetic look, and they all continued their journey once again in silence.

They kept a careful lookout for predators as they went, the 'Cleaners' sometimes looking behind them to ensure nothing was following. They walked swiftly, but as silently as possible, not wanting to alert any creatures of their presence. Suddenly, a roar broke the calm and tranquillity, and seemed to wash over them. All four of them stopped moving immediately and looked towards the sound. Abby and Connor looked at each other worriedly.

The 'Cleaners' started to move on again, warily, with Abby and Connor following as quietly as they could. Suddenly a large therapod dinosaur about 10 feet tall came crashing out of the trees. The first 'Cleaner' didn't stand a chance. He didn't have time to do anything as the creature grabbed him in its large powerful jaws. The 'Cleaner' screamed once only. As the creature moved forward, the other 'Cleaner' stood his ground and fired shot after shot at it. Connor pulled Abby away and pushed her behind a very large tree, where they hid from sight as they had no weapons to defend themselves with.

Although the gunfire seemed to have little effect, the creature suddenly turned away, it's already dead prey dangling from its mouth, blood dripping from the body. Connor and Abby came out from their hiding place.

"Sorry about your… er… friend... brother… whatever… sorry, mate" said Connor. The 'Cleaner' didn't bat an eyelid. He didn't seem to have any emotions at all. He signalled them to move onward. Abby and Connor looked at each other but continued their journey still rather shocked and upset from the death of the clone.

"What _was_ that?" Abby whispered to Connor

"Megalosaurus" Connor replied "Great Lizard!"

"Well, I hope it's gone!" she said looking around. Connor nodded in agreement. He didn't want to meet that dinosaur again- especially unarmed. Roars still sounded at times as they moved onwards, and every now and again one of them would turn nervously to one side or the other to check it was clear. Abby and Connor joined hands as they continued their journey, and the one surviving 'Cleaner' either didn't notice or care as he let them draw comfort from the contact. Suddenly they stopped, looking in awe at the sight in front of them. A short distance ahead of them was a group of dinosaurs.

"Wha…what are they?" whispered Abby looking at the powerful dinosaurs. They walked on two legs and had short arms with three fingered hands, ending in sharp claws about 6 inches long.

"Allosaurus. Very intelligent. Run in packs. Carnivores" Connor shot out quietly "We really don't want them to see us!"

They decided to try to head around them and hope they weren't seen. They didn't want to divert too far away or else they might miss the anomaly as they only had about a half an hour left before it closed now.

The 'Cleaner' set off at a fast pace, and Abby and Connor had a hard job to keep up with him. He no longer seemed to care if they were still following him or not, and was soon far ahead of them.

"C…Connor, wait up" whispered Abby, tripping over a tree stump "Ow! My ankle!"

Connor bent over to check Abby's ankle "It's already swelling up!" Connor said worriedly "Don't think it's broken, though- more likely a sprain. Can you walk?" He looked ahead as he spoke, just in time to see the 'Cleaner' disappear through the trees.

"I don't know- I'll try" said Abby, gingerly standing up on her good leg, the other in the air as if she was about to hop. She carefully lowered her foot to the ground, and put some weight onto it. She instantly crumbled to the ground, her ankle unable to support her weight. "Oh!" She cried out in pain.

"It's OK, it's OK- here, lean on me. We'll be OK- we can do this" said Connor

"Yeah" she replied doubtfully "But where's the 'Cleaner'? Connor! He's gone! We don't know the way back!"

"It's Ok, Abby- it can't be too hard to find- I kinda recognise where we are- that rock looks very familiar" He noticed Abby's incredulous look, and added "I was in the boy scouts, wasn't I. I'll get us back, don't worry!" He said with more bravado than he felt.

"Anyway, maybe when the anomaly opened Matt and Becker came through to find us"

"No" replied Abby "The 'no going through anomalies' rule- remember. Becker's a stickler for that! No, we're on our own!"

"Well, that's how I like it- me…and you, that's all I'll ever need, Abby. C'm here" Connor pulled Abby to him and hugged her fiercely, closing his eyes for a moment and just savouring her closeness. Abby too enjoyed the comfort of the close contact. She was very tired from all the emotions she had gone through these past few days. It took a lot out of her, and her spirits were at a very low ebb. But she knew that Connor and she were a great team together- they'd survived worse than this before, and they'd do it again. She was sure….

"Come on, we'd better move." Connor said after a few moments "Here, put your arm around me and let me take your weight."

"I'm sorry, Connor. It was stupid, tripping over that tree!"

"Yeah! Usually the kind of thing I do! Makes a change from me being hurt, and anyway you're light enough for me to carry if it comes to it"

"What!"

"Just joking! Need the practice for carrying you over the threshold, don't I! C'mon- let's go"

They slowly started moving in the general direction of the anomaly, Abby leaning heavily on Connor, and Connor half pulling, half carrying Abby along at the fastest pace they could manage. After just a few yards, Abby was hot and sweating through the effort, and her ankle was throbbing badly, but she gritted her teeth and carried on. Nothing was going to stop her going back through that anomaly.

Suddenly, immediately to their left they heard a huge roar and the thud of a huge animal approaching. It suddenly looked in their direction- it seemed to be sniffing the air.

"Oh, oh!" Connor said

"Oh, oh?" countered Abby

"I think it's got our scent! We'd better try to get away from here" The Allosaurus started roaring.

"What's it doing?" puffed Abby, as she and Connor rushed forward from tree to tree.

"It's alerting the herd- they hunt in packs. We'd better hope they don't all come- won't stand a chance! It's the scout- can you go a bit faster?"

"I'm trying, Connor-"

They continued on, the large dinosaur lumbering alongside just a short distance from them.

"Lucky they're slow. But they're so big, one stride brings them nearer to us!"

"This one seems fast enough for me!" Abby said

"Yeah, you're right…I…I think the others are coming! Listen! I can hear them roaring in reply."

They had no option but to keep going, but they got slower and slower as Abby's ankle made it hard for her to run in the dense vegetation.

"Con….Connor- leave me! There's no point in us both dying. You go ahead- bring back help if you can. I'll be OK"

"Wha…NO! No, Abby- I'm not leaving you here. We're a team, me and you- we go together or not at all"

"Please, Connor…" Abby begged, tears streaming from her eyes

"No! I can't- I love you!" Connor said, remembering another occasion when the very same conversation happened, more or less. But that time, he hadn't admitted he'd ever said those words to her- he wasn't about to make that same mistake again. "I'll never leave you and this time I'll shout it out from the rooftops- I love you!"

"Oh, Connor" she said, practically melting at his words. "I love you too!" It wasn't often either of them actually said those words out loud. When they did, it felt all the more special to both of them. But they didn't have time to linger as the Allosaurus suddenly ran out from the trees, directly at them. Connor pushed Abby aside and leapt the other way as the huge creature lumbered towards them.

Connor got up, and saw Abby struggling to stand as the creature saw her and started to make a bee-line for her. It came at a great speed- too fast for its two legs and it fell forward, crashing to the ground. Its arms were too short to protect it from the fall, and a loud crack emanated from it, as one of its ribs snapped. It landed just inches from Abby's face; it's long, sharp serrated teeth snapping at her.

Abby managed to struggle to her feet and the creature's teeth snapped shut at the exact place she had been a moment before, but only tasted air! As Abby backed away as fast as she could, half hopping, Connor ran over to her and helped her move around the huge dinosaur.

"The anomaly can't be too far from here now" Connor said

"If we're going the right way!" Abby said worriedly. They limped forward a few more yards when they heard another roar behind them.

"Oh no, another one! The pack must be following." Connor cried. They threw themselves over a tree trunk and fell down an incline where they finally came to land at the bottom. As Connor looked up, he looked straight into the face of a dinosaur which was lying on the ground. He jumped back, terrified. There were two of them. One was obviously dead, but the other looked injured. It roared in pain and struggled to get up, but its head just fell back to the ground.

"Poor thing!" said Abby sorrowfully. She was always saddened when a creature was hurt no matter if it had just tried to eat her or not! Connor looked at her, half in amazement, half in pride of his wonderful, caring fiancée.

"H…help me…" cried a weak voice. They looked at each other and then started to search for the owner of the voice.

"Over here!" cried Connor, as he found the 'Cleaner' who had left them earlier. One of his legs was trapped underneath the dead dinosaur's body, his gun still hot from shooting the two creatures.

"It's OK, mate" Connor said "We'll get you out" Connor and Abby looked at the creature. It was an Apatosaurus, Connor realised. They tried to shift the sauropod off of the 'Cleaner' but couldn't move it.

"Hang on" said Connor "We need something for leverage…"He looked around, and found a large, thick branch on the ground. He placed one end under the creature and pulled down as hard as he could. He only had the strength to raise it a little, but it was enough for Abby to pull her hardest and get the 'Cleaner' clear. Once he was clear, Abby fell to the ground, the effort being too much for her in her weakened state. Connor found himself with two casualties and could hear the roars of the Allosaurus pack coming- tempted by the smell of blood…..

To Be Continued….

_There we have it! I hope you found it exciting! Please excuse any spelling mistakes- the excitement makes me type too fast as the action takes over!_

_Please, please review. Next chapter soon…_


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: Primeval and all its characters belong to someone else.

_Summary: - Another, hopefully exciting chapter, full of action. I really hope you like it!_

**Shards of Glass**

**Chapter Eight****- **The Anomaly

Connor ran to Abby! "Abby, Abby- wake up" he cried. He went to slap her face, but couldn't bring himself to do it, and ended up giving her a weak tap on the side of her cheek. He leant in and kissed her lips instead.

"Please wake up" he whispered. There was no response- she was unconscious, but thankfully Connor could see she was breathing. He ran over to the 'Cleaner' to see how he was doing. The 'Cleaner' had managed to pull himself up by using the rifle as a prop. His leg was badly injured but he didn't seem to be in too much pain, although he couldn't walk on it properly. Connor privately thought these clones were like something out of Dr Who- robots or androids! He shook himself- no time for fantasies now! He grabbed the man's water bottle off him and went back to where Abby was still lying prone on the ground. He ripped the bottom of his shirt and soaked it with the ice cold water, and gently dabbed Abby's face with the dampened cloth.

Abby groaned and turned her head towards Connor. She slowly opened her eyes, but the light was too much, and she closed them again.

"Abby?" whispered Connor.

She weakly opened her eyes again, but everything was a bit blurry. She opened and shut them a few times, and when she could finally focus she saw a very worried looking Connor by her side.

"Hi!" she whispered

"Hi!" he replied and gave her another soft kiss; he was so relieved to see she was OK. She groaned with tiredness and pain, but turned her head and returned his kiss, but they quickly broke apart as they heard the Allosaurus, which was sounding even nearer to them now. Connor pulled Abby to her feet, and helped her go to over to where the injured 'Cleaner' was standing, silently watching them.

"Can you walk, mate?" Connor asked. The 'Cleaner' grunted and tried to walk, and fortunately he seemed able to put enough weight onto his bad leg to enable him to walk unaided. Connor was really relieved- he didn't know how he would have been able to manage with the two of them injured. They started to move onwards again, but it was at a very slow pace now- the 'Cleaner' limped just ahead of them, whilst Connor helped Abby along. Connor felt so proud of her- she had been through so much, and even now she gamely continued without a word of complaint or self- pity- she just gritted her teeth and got on with the job on hand! She had even been willing to stay behind in order to save Connor- he felt so lucky to have her as his fiancée. He _had_ to get her safely to the anomaly- there was only about fifteen minutes left now, before it closed!

All this time though, the roars had got louder and louder- the creatures were closing in very quickly, drawn by the scent of blood from the two dinosaurs lying on the ground- they still weren't far enough away from them, Connor realised. They were moving too slowly! Just then, one burst out from the trees at the side of them. This was it! There was no chance now! The 'Cleaner' started shooting, but he had spent most of his bullets on the two creatures and suddenly there was just the sound of his gun 'clicking' instead of firing! It was empty. He aimlessly threw the gun at the dinosaur, hitting it squarely on the nose, but it had no effect on the creature whatsoever. Connor and Abby hugged each other. They both knew this was their last moment alive. They stood there, petrified; awaiting their death, hoping it would be quick! Abby could feel Connor shaking beside her, and she drew him into a kiss, so that they would die together in each other's arms.

Suddenly another roar sounded out, and a different creature ran at full tilt towards the Allosaurus. This creature was smaller than the Allosaurus, but had come running, tempted by the smell of blood. The two beasts started to circle around each other, snarling and roaring. The creature- a Ceratosaurus started snapping at the Allosaurus, but then darted back. It ran a short distance away but turned again to snap at the Allosaurus. It lunged at the Allosaurus with its curved claws, and managed to scrape a large gash in the side of the creature's face- but the Allosaurus was too big and powerful for it, and grabbed the smaller dinosaur by the neck, and started shaking it to and fro.

As soon as the second creature burst through the trees, Abby, Connor and the 'Cleaner' had quickly backed as far away from the fight as they could without drawing attention to themselves, and hid behind a huge tree.

As the fight grew to a crescendo, the three of them took the opportunity and ran through the undergrowth through some trees, in the general direction of where they thought the anomaly was. The fear and adrenalin gave both the injured 'Cleaner' and Abby the boost they needed to rush forward as fast as their injuries would let them, but this still wasn't as fast as they would all have liked. They could hear the Allosaurus finishing off the poor creature as it threw it to the ground, roaring in victory. It lifted up its head and sniffed at the air. It turned in the direction of the three terrified people, fleeing as fast as they could through the trees. At one point, the 'Cleaner' ran too fast for his injured leg, and went crashing to the ground. Connor helped him scramble up and they continued forward, looking behind them in fear.

They were all covered with scratches and cuts now from the branches whipping at their faces as they ran as fast as they could, and the smell of their blood and their fear seemed to enrage the creature further as it took flight and started to run after them once again.

"There! There!" screamed Abby "Through the trees- what's that?"

Connor and the 'Cleaner looked in the direction she was pointing. They could see a bright light through he trees, floating shards of glass. They looked at each other in relief and thrill at the sight! They all started forward, but suddenly the huge Allosaurus slowly stepped in front of them, its body between them and the anomaly.

"No!" cried Connor, as Abby fell to the ground, all her energy expended. "Alright!" he continued to the dinosaur "You want someone- come on- follow me! Over here!" He waved his hands above his head as he moved away from Abby and the 'Cleaner' meaning to draw the creature away from them

The creature looked at Connor, and then at Abby and the 'Cleaner' as if to decide who to attack first. Connor pulled off his ripped red shirt and started flapping it towards the Allosaurus, desperately trying to draw its attention away from the others.

"C'mon, you great…..lizard!" he yelled "This way- I'm much tastier than them!"

The Allosaurus seemed to finally make its mind up. With the Ceratosaurus's blood still dripping from its jaws, it gave a final roar and began to charge after Connor.

"Take her through" he yelled to the 'Cleaner' who was bending down, trying to pull Abby to her feet. Connor could only hear the blood pounding in his ears, and the sound of Abby's screams as he drew the creature towards him to give the others a chance to escape. "Come On!" he yelled.

As the Allosaurus started to charge at Connor, he threw his shirt aside, and turned and began to run. He darted behind a tree, but didn't remain there as he didn't want the creature to go back to where the 'Cleaner' was helping Abby towards the anomaly. He ran out from around the tree trunk, yelling at the Allosaurus all the time. Suddenly as he ran from tree to tree, he realised the Allosaurus had practically been herding him to a dead- end. There was only a huge drop behind him now. There was no where left to run.

"Clever boy!" Connor said, in terror.

The creature seemed to realise it was victorious as it stopped and lifted its head to bellow out a huge triumphant roar, when suddenly shots rang out. The creature yelped and whipped its head around. Shot upon shot was fired, with the creature screaming and roaring in pain. It looked at Connor one last time- moved a step forward, and suddenly pitched forward to fall with a huge crash onto the ground, just inches from where Connor stood. Connor promptly dropped to the ground, his legs no longer able to support his as they were shaking so much. The Allosaurus lifted its head once more in a last roar, which made Connor scramble sideways as fast as he could away from the creature. It dropped its head and finally succumbed to the electrical charges it had received through its body.

As Connor breathlessly looked up, he saw Abby running as fast as she was able into the open arms of Emily, who was standing in front of the glass shards, an EMD in her hands. Emily pulled Abby into an embrace, and was joined by Matt who came to her side, and clapped her on the back, relieved and happy to see her alive. As Abby stood there in Emily and Matt's embrace, tears coursing down her cheeks, Connor saw some soldiers helping the 'Cleaner', taking him away through the anomaly guns pointed at his back.

"Hey- you going to stay there all night?" said a very welcome voice. He looked up and saw Becker standing above him, one hand stretching out to him to help him up. Connor grabbed the outstretched hand, and as he stood, he was drawn into a huge hug by the usually very stoic soldier. "Welcome back!" Becker said, laughing.

"You took your time!" Connor quipped, laughing in relief "What, Becker- you came through the anomaly? What about the rules?"

"That to the rules!" replied Becker clicking his fingers as he said 'that'- "I couldn't let you have another year long holiday, now could I!" Just as they bantered, huge roars sounded behind them. The rest of the pack had finally caught up with them.

"Everyone through the anomaly" ordered Matt "NOW!" he yelled. No one needed telling twice- they all ran through the anomaly as fast as they could. As soon as they rushed through, only to fall to the ground on the other side, Matt yelled-

"Lock it! Lock it now!" and a soldier immediately pressed the keys on the keyboard set up beside the anomaly, and the shards of glass throbbed into a tight ball and closed.

Everyone just looked at each other for a moment, in relief, and laughed to release the tension.

"Thank you!" whispered Abby to Matt and Becker as Connor made his way to her side. He put his arm around her and they gazed deeply into each others eyes. They were safe- they had made it back!

"We've so much to tell you…" started Connor, but Matt cut him short-

"Save it, mate" he said "First of all, let's get you both checked out by the medics. Then you're to go to the apartment at the ARC and get a good meal inside you- I'll order you some food in. You'll both have to stay there tonight until you have your de- briefing with Lester in the morning. After that you're free to go home!"

"Can't… can't we just go home now?" Abby said, her bottom lip trembling

"Hey! You're not under arrest- but I want you near the ARC in case you have any after effects. That's all. We want to take care of you both, not imprison you! Just one night and them you'll be free to go home, if that's what you want, I promise"

"Thanks, Matt" said Connor gratefully "To be honest I don't think I could face Jess' questions and chirpiness just now! I love her to pieces, but ….."

"I know, mate. You just need to relax together quietly, and get your strength back. We'll sort it all out tomorrow."…..

To Be Continued…..


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: Primeval and all its characters belong to someone else.

_Unfortunately this is the last chapter in this story- I'm going to miss it so much! It's been great fun to write, and I hope you have enjoyed it._

_This chapter contains some fluff, as I couldn't end the story without there being some!_

**Shards of Glass**

**Chapter Nine-** Back home?

Connor and Abby were taken to the ARC hospital where they were given a complete check up and treated for their various injuries. The medics also gave them some pain relievers for their numerous aches and pains, and once the doctors had seen them both, they gave them the all clear to leave.

"Matt- do we really have to stay in the apartments …please, can't we just go home?" Abby pleaded, feeling tearful and emotional. She just wanted a shower, some food and her bed!

"I'm sorry, Abby- its Lester's orders. He wants to make sure you're both alright. He wants you near the medical bay in case you need it…"

"But, we've had a clean bill of health- they said we're fine…"

"Abby- Lester will never tell you this, but he was really worried about you…both of you" Matt added as he turned to look at Connor who was standing by Abby's side. He turned back to Abby "He just wants to make sure…. He saw the 'Cleaner', Abby. He wants to make sure there aren't any more of them and that they won't harm either of you. Just one night and then you can speak to Lester. Once he's sure you'll be safe he'll let you go home, I promise. You've got to trust me!"

Abby finally gave in and nodded her head "Just one night, though" she said, showing a flash of her old spirit which made Matt smile. He was happy to know she was almost back to her old self again!

Becker gave them a lift to the ARC apartments, which were only a few miles down the road from the ARC.

They looked at the room, both remembering another time they had stayed there. It had all seemed so strange then. It seemed more relaxed this time round- maybe because they knew they were still wanted at the ARC, and knew they fitted in. Becker stayed with them for a little while, just talking small talk, none of them wanting to talk about what had happened through the anomaly just yet. Becker went a bit quiet and then said

"I… er... I… well, I'm not going to make a habit of this, but I'm really glad you're both back! I was afraid it was going to be a repeat of what happened before… and- if you ever repeat this, Connor, I'll shoot you myself, but I was really worried about you both! Matt wanted to go through the anomaly after you, but at first I refused- because of the rules, you know. When we lost Sarah…." He said, looking down at his feet.

"Hey, it's OK" whispered Abby "We understand"

"Matt wanted to go through, but I stopped him. He never gave up on you both, you know. He's like a beaver gnawing away until he gets what he wants. In the end, I said we'd just go through and wait just the other side of the anomaly. When I saw that dinosaur go for you Connor… well, I'm sorry. I should have listened to Matt..."

"Becker! Really, it's OK- we understand, really we do. You did the right thing. It all worked out in the end, didn't it?" Abby soothed.

"Yeah, mate. Don't be too hard on yourself. Just make sure you come after us next time, eh!" Connor said. They all laughed, lightening the atmosphere, and when the food arrived, they were all feeling more in the party mood, and invited Becker to join them. They had a lovely evening, just enjoying being free and alive, and when Becker said finally that he had to go, they felt much better than they had when they first got back. They thanked Becker and went to the door to see him off.

As Becker left them to the rest of their evening, Connor looked over at Abby, a huge grin on his face "I thought he'd never go!" he said

"Connor!" cried Abby

"You know, we never did make full use of that lovely big bed, last time" he said giving her a roughish look which made her blush a little.

"Well, we'd better try our best this time then, hadn't we?" Abby laughed back, as he pulled her closer to him into a passionate embrace, his tongue slipping into her mouth, savouring the taste of her.

As their kiss got more passionate, Connor fumbled with the buttons on his shirt, and Abby reached over to help him unbutton them. He helped her take off her top and as they stood together, their clothes cast aside at their feet, they melted into each other's arms, lost in the moment.

As their passion grew, they each grabbed handfuls of each others hair, and Connor easily swung Abby up into his arms and carried her towards the bedroom.

Just as they reached the bedroom, there was a loud knock on the door. They both looked at each other, concerned who it could be, Lester's fears uppermost in their minds. Connor put Abby down, and she grabbed the first thing she could find, which was a lamp and held it above her head, just behind the door. Connor glanced at her, gave a quick nod, and then pulled the door open quickly. Abby screamed and brought the lamp down hard. Just before the lamp could make contact, a figure appeared, and when Abby saw who it was, she dropped the lamp before it connected. The lamp fell to the floor and shattered.

"So that's the thanks I get for bringing you gifts!" a familiar voice said

"Jenny!" Abby and Connor exclaimed. Abby remembered her state of undress and hid behind Connor.

"Jenny! What are you doing here?" Connor said

"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! Are you alright?" Abby cried at the same time.

"I'm fine. I'm fine! Can't say the same for that lamp though" she said gesturing to the broken pieces of lamp on the floor, and smiling.

"But what are you doing here?" Abby asked, putting on a dressing gown, and moving over to Jenny.

"Matt told me what happened, and I decided to make sure you were both OK… and to bring you this…" said Jenny, holding up a large bottle of champagne in each hand.

"That's… thanks, Jenny" said Connor, and dashed off to get some glasses.

As he left, Jenny smirked at Abby, and said "I haven't interrupted anything, have I?" gesturing at Abby and Connor's state of undress.

"Er…no- no of course not" said Abby, going red and sounding so totally unconvincing that Jenny laughed, and Abby suddenly saw the funny side and joined in. Connor returned wearing a new t- shirt, waving some glasses at the girls, and they all sat down to chat together. As the evening wore on, they all began to get slightly tipsy and giggled and made silly jokes about nothing in particular. Abby suddenly gave a huge yawn. She hadn't meant to, but it just popped out- she was so tired and weary, even though she was enjoying Jenny's company.

"Oh, dear!" said Jenny "I think I'd better be off- of course you're both tired after your adventures"

"No…really…" began Abby

"No, it's OK. I have to be going anyway. Michael will be wondering where I am! Don't worry, I'm not driving- Matt lent me one of the men from the ARC! Goodnight, you two. I'm so glad you're alright!"

Abby and Connor both kissed and hugged Jenny, and saw her to the door. Just as she was leaving, Jenny said "Have fun, now!" and with a smirk on her face as she departed.

"Jenny!" Abby cried after her, and they could hear Jenny's laughter as she went down the stairs.

Abby and Connor looked at each other as she left. "That was nice of her" said Abby

"Yeah" agreed Connor "And, you know what Abby- We've seen Becker; Matt and Emily. We know Jenny's here, and she's still married to Michael, so nothing's changed! We did it! We went through and didn't change anything! "Connor grabbed Abby's hands and they laughed in relief "Although, Lester being worried about us is a bit…odd!" he joked.

"Connor, do you want the first shower?" asked Abby, as she gave a huge yawn. "You take less time than me, and I'll go and make us both a hot chocolate."

"If you're sure, I won't take long, I promise."

Connor was as good as his word, and a very short time later came out of the shower, glowing and pink faced from the steamy water. He had a small towel around his waist and looked up as Abby walked back into the room. She was wearing just a tiny pair of panties and her bra top, and they stood there for a long while, just looking into each other's eyes. Abby broke the look when her eyes travelled over Connor's body. His hair was still wet from his shower, and drops of water dripped from his hair onto his chest and rolled down to his hips where the towel stopped their journey.

Abby ran her tongue over her lips, and Connor stifled a groan at the action. He too looked at Abby, noticing the slight flush on her face, and her perfect curves in the scant clothing. Connor moved swiftly to Abby's side, and as he put his arms around her, his mouth came down softly to hers. Their kisses got more passionate and needy as they moved into the bedroom, still locked in a passionate embrace…..

…..

They woke up the next morning to bright sunlight coursing through the French windows. They smiled at each other and kissed as they said good morning. Abby got up and put on a dressing gown, and went out onto the balcony. Connor got up and joined her outside, wrapping his arms around her. She lay her head contentedly on his chest, eyes closed and they stood like that for a while, enjoying being alive and together. Connor remembered another occasion when they had stood in the same spot, in the same position. That seemed so long ago, now!

Some time later, after they had showered, dressed and eaten breakfast, they were interrupted by a knock on the door. Becker stood there, smiling down at them both.

"Hey" he aid "Are you both OK? I've come to take you to the ARC for the de-briefing with Lester, if you feel up to it?"

"Yeah, we're fine- no after effects at all!" smiled Abby

"I've got a bit of a headache, myself" said Connor. As Becker and Abby looked at him, he added "From the champagne you know! Not really used to drinking it!"

They left the apartments with Becker and he drove them back to the ARC. As they walked in, they suddenly heard a squeal, and a vision in lurid orange flung herself at them.

"Jess!" They laughed

"It's so good to see you!" she cried "Are you OK? Oh, I've missed you both so much! I was so worried… well we all were… especially Becker…well and Matt of course, but…." She continued, rambling on in only the way Jess could. They all laughed at Becker who was standing beside Jess, his arms folded across his chest, a stony look on his face.

"It's OK, mate" said Connor, clapping Becker on the shoulder "We missed you too!"

Becker didn't have the opportunity to respond when Matt suddenly arrived. "Lester wants us all in his office now, for the de-brief" he said. They all walked into Lester's office, Jess still talking nineteen to the dozen. Some of them sat on the chairs placed around the table, Becker and Matt stood at the back of the room, leaning against the wall, and Jess sat on a table, her legs swinging to and fro.

Lester entered the room, and walked over to his desk, and sat down. I'm very glad to see you both" he said "But really, Connor- can't you ever stay out of trouble!"

Connor looked down "Sorry" he said

"Well, do you want us to tell you what happened?" Abby asked

"We'll just wait for the stragglers!" said Lester "Always late!"

"Who're we waiting for?" asked Connor "We're all here aren't we- oh unless you mean Jen…."

Connor broke off mid sentence, mouth gaping wide open. He half rose in his chair. Beside him, Abby squawked, her hand rushing up to cover her mouth.

"Hey, everyone" a voice said "I haven't kept you waiting, have I?" said the latecomer in a broad Scottish accent. "What's Sid and Nancy been up to now?"

Connor and Abby stared as if their eyes would pop out of their heads. In the doorway stood Nick Cutter with Stephen Hart standing by his side….

THE END

_Did you guess? Well, that's the end of Shards of Glass- all started from walking to work on a really rainy, windy day! _

_Thanks for reading!_


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